Alien Guardian
by Ghost rider 1-3
Summary: Kanan Jarrus, captain of the Atlas co-operation. He was a emotionless operative, until an alien was sighted in his own doorstep. Rated T for violence and language. I do not own the cover image.
1. Chapter 1: Ascension

The world is at the brink of destruction. After the wake of the KVA, nations fell one by one, in the hands of Hades. My mother Depa was one of the many casualties of their uprising. Now I only seek a purpose to live, and I did, thanks to my dearest friend Gideon.

"The weather's never been better. We got the North and South Korea at the brink of war, multiple KVA attacks in Europe in just two weeks, and now they're marching up on our soil. Fuck me." Gideon said sarcastically. "And guess what the closest thing to good news is." Kanan groaned in frustration. He did wish for a better status in the co-operation, but unfortunately that means taking recruits.

Gideon seemed like he could read his friend's mind. "Recruits?" He asked. "Yup. Name's Ezra and Sabine."

'Ascension'

Area 51, United States

May 3, 2042-2000 hrs

A squadron of five warbirds hovered above the skies of the experimental facility. Kanan and his team were sitting in the lead chopper. "Everyone seeing this? Alright. According to our intel, the KVA is after an experimental orbital platform stored inside the facility. We'll drop in the airfield and push them back to the main gate. The Titans will take care of the rest. Everyone get ready." Ezra and Sabine loaded their weapons as the infamous Area 51 emerged from the horizon.

"Thirty seconds!" Shouted Kanan. Rockets and bullets came flying at them as they made their approach. Ezra spinned his rotary rifle and unloaded a volley of bullets at the KVA below them. Their landing zone was soon clear and Kanan grabbed a zip line turret and fired it at the concrete ground below.

The rest of the team were on the ground. They sprinted to the nearest cover and dropped another few KVA infantry. "We gotta keep them from getting in from the main entrance! Let's go!" Ordered Kanan. Ezra and Sabine activated their boost jump and gunned down the short sleeved terrorists below. The two landed safely a few meters away, leaving bodies lying behind them. But before they could progress any further, several jeeps stopped up in front of them and started unloading soldiers and bullets onto them.

"Ezra! I need you to flank the turrets and take them out! We'll cover you!" Ordered Kanan. Ezra quickly reloaded his weapon and sprinted up a wall beside him. He used his magnet grips to cling on the surface and pulled out his pistol, catching the gunners by surprise. He managed to drop one, but the other turret soon noticed him and rotated his battery. Ezra landed behind the first truck and managed to avoid the deadly rounds, for now. Kanan peeked out from his cover and noticed Ezra crouching behind the truck. Without a second thought, he activated his riot shield and managed to distract the gunner, allowing Ezra to use his sniper rifle to line up a clean shot.

The team fought their way inside the facility and helped recovered several experimental subjects. They made through the maze-like hallways and corridors and finally reached the orbital platform. "This looks nothing like an orbital platform. It's more like...a space station. No, a spaceship." Commented Sabine. "We need to keep it from falling into the wrong hands. That's all you need to know." Kanan replied sternly. Sabine was about to question Kanan when a voice screamed through her radio and almost caused her to flinch. "Spectre team, where the hell are you? We got multiple Titan tanks in the horizon. They're gonna tear us apart!"

"Copy that Delta team. We're en route to your position." The team sprinted towards the main gate, only to encounter dozens of KVA soldiers along the way. The resistance grew more and more intense as they progressed to the gate, but was ultimately gunned down by the highly-trained operatives. By the time they've reached the gate, the defenses were falling apart. Atlas troops desperately held the line, but was at the edge of being overrun.

Ezra pointed at the KVA chopper and yelled out with all his might. "They're dropping Titans at the main gate!" Kanan turned his attention to the fleeing choppers and shot one of the pilots, causing an enemy Titan to be out of commission. "Sabine, I see a Stinger behind the downed MD turret! Bring that tank down!" Ordered Kanan. "I'm on it!"

Sabine pulled out her twin SMGs and cleared a path to the gate. Ezra sprinted to the turret and hopped inside. He quickly gained a missile lock on one of the Titans and opened fire. The Titan was hit, but it was shielded by a trophy system. She grabbed the launcher off the floor and unloaded a volley of rockets into the tank. Its leg was crippled by the blast, but the machine gun was still ripping the infantry apart.

Ezra then heard a grunt that sent a chill down his spine: She was hit. He fired one last round of rockets and jumped out of the turret. What he saw was his teammate lying there, with two wounds in her shoulder. "Spectre 2-1! 2-3 is down. I need a medic on my location!" He picked the Stinger off the ground, and started unloading the rest of the rockets into the Titans.

Eventually, one fell apart. But the other tank was still marching towards the front. Two Atlas medics ran up to him and checked her injuries. "Keep an eye on her! I'm going for the tank!" What Ezra did next caught Kanan by surprise. He jumped up, landed on the top of the tank, and tore down the machine gun single-handed. A gunner flipped the lid of the tank, only to be tossed off the tank by Ezra.

He dumped a few grenades inside and hopped off the Titan just before it was sent sky-high. He quickly got on his feet and ran back outside to repel the incoming KVA. "They're pulling back to the gates! Hit them hard!" Yelled Kanan. The captain bolted towards the gate with an EM1 he found in a crate and fired its red hot laser beam at the infantry crammed at the gate. The KVA fell one by one, with shrouds of scorch painted on their bodies.

A relieving voice crackled through Kanan's radio. "All units this is commander Sato, we are no longer on the defensive. Mop up the infantry and begin counterattack." Kanan grinned slightly and ordered his team to push forward. Soon, they had the KVA on the run, for now. "Nice work team. Drinks on Ezra tonight." The rookie shrieked in disbelief, but soon returned to his charming face.


	2. Chapter 2: Introduction

**Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars Rebels, Call Of Duty Advanced Warfare or any of this characters.**

Character introduction

Kanan Jarrus: A formidable Atlas captain. After the death of his parents, he joined the Atlas co-operation with his best friend Gideon and fought in many battles alongside with each other. After earning a year of combat experience, he was rewarded the title as a captain and soon had his own team.  
Gear: Specialist exo, HBRa3, twin Atlas 45, various exo attachments

Ezra Bridger: A recruit under the command of Kanan. He joined the Atlas co-operation to seek vengeance after his parents perished in a terrorist attack. He was well-known for the success of befriending Sabine Wren, a.k.a. 'nuke'. However, revenge was not the only reason he joined Atlas...  
Gear: Assault exo, IMR, MK14, Atlas 45, various exo attachments

Sabine Wren: Nicknamed 'nuke' for her brutal hand-to-hand combat tactics, she signed up to become an Atlas operative after the fall of her family's crime syndicate, the Death Watch. After a series of brutal training, she became a close friend to Ezra and fought in key battles such as the siege of Area 51.  
Gear: Assault exo, twin MP-11 SMGs, Atlas 45, various exo attachments

Gideon: A friend of Kanan and captain of Atlas. Gideon was an orphan when the KVA first attacked his homeland. He joined the Atlas co-operation with Kanan and soon received his own partner: Joker. After the siege of Area 51, he and his team were assigned to investigate the alien presence in the Nevada state.  
Gear: Specialist exo, HBRa3, Atlas 45, various exo attachments

Sergeant Orrelios: One of the first members of the Sentinel Task Force. He was once a famed MMA fighter until he was recruited by Sentinel. He soon proved his place in the special unit and was the muscle of the team. But deep beneath his heavy armour, laid a secret that could never be discovered.  
Gear: AST

Alien: Classified as near-human. The alien was hunted down by both Sentinel and Atlas after the siege of Area 51.  
Gear: Specialist exo, ARX-160, Atlas 45


	3. Chapter 3: Tailhead

Kanan was walking down the hallway of Area 51 casually and managed to avoid excessive attention from his colleagues. He quietly snuck down the stairwell and headed for the experimental orbital platform three stories underground. Kanan peeked around for guards before he creeped towards the ramp of he platform. He headed inside and placed his USB onto a table.

Soon, dozens of classified files were displayed on the table, allowing Kanan to extract the files from the archive. He went through the files quickly, and came across a certain project 'tailhead'. He opened the file, and was shocked to see the picture of a young, green-skinned woman with a pair of tentacles stretching out from the back of her head and no ears. What took its place was a pair of cone shaped organ.

Kanan's shock grew even bigger as he scrolled down. He found out that project Tailhead was no mutation experiment. Instead, it was something not from Theo's planet. Kanan managed to get back to his senses and continued to explore the ship. His curiousity paid off when he found a tank with the woman he saw earlier inside. He swiftly ducked into a corner and caught his breath, hoping what he just saw was just a terrible bad dream.

Unfortunately for him, what he saw was all real. His mind was debating, about whether to step aside and let war break out between races or to bust her out. But eventually his compassion reigned victorious, and he sprinted towards the tank and unlocked it.

His fate remains unknown.

Two weeks later...

'Tailhead'

Atlas HQ, New Baghdad

4 June-1700hrs

Ezra was pacing around outside the sick room. He hasn't heard from Sabine since last month, and the waiting was driving him nuts. His head bolted upright when he heard the door of the sick room open. "Glad you're okay." Said Ezra. Sabine was about to reply when Gideon walked up to the two. "Ezra!" He turned to his right and saw Gideon standing there with a concerned face. "What is it?"

"Kanan is on leave, says he had some mental issues. Nothing serious, don't worry." Replied Gideon. "Glad you said that sir. He was a little off when I last saw him." Said Ezra. "Anyway, that's not why I'm here. One of our experimental weapons, code named Tailhead, is missing. We're tasked to retrieve this weapon, and destroy it if necessary." He continued. "So where is it right now?" Asked Sabine. "That's what we have to find out. We'll start with Ringo Vinda."

* * *

"...all units this is Sato, commencing drop in 90 seconds." Ezra and Sabine strapped themselves on the side seats of the drop pod, along with two other Atlas operatives. Gideon sat in the middle of the drop pod, acting as guidance for the pod's drop path. "Just like in training, boys." Ezra took a deep breath and awaited for the countdown. "...5...4...3...2...1...deploy! Deploy! Deploy!" The nav computer on top of Gideon was automatically activated, allowing him to see where they're headed. The pod accelerated and broke out of the clouds. Below was a ring-shaped facility with dozens of SAM sites and solar panels around it.

The pod swerved right, just enough to avoid an incoming missile. Soon, the pod touched down near an antenna and the three sprinted out. "Remember, no one but the three of us should know about this mission. We have to find out where that weapon went." Said Gideon. The team headed towards the building under heavy fire and managed to take down a turret along the way. Gideon hopped on the machine gun while Ezra and Sabine took cover behind the jeep.

Wreckage and KVA soldiers were piled in their way, making their advance even harder. Eventually, Ezra had to pull out his assault drone on his back to suppress the KVA and allow them to push forward. The dust from the explosions splashed on their faces as they unloaded clusters of bullets onto the terrorists ahead of them. It took them at least ten minutes before they could move another fifty meters ahead. But when they took cover behind a wrecked car ahead, they noticed a couple of mounted trucks parked at the entrance, blocking their only way in.

"Sabine, use your boost jump!" Ordered Gideon. She drew her twin SMGs and jumped into the air. The KVA beneath her fell one by one as she unleashed a rain of bullets on their heads. Ezra and Gideon dropped the surviving terrorists and ran up to Sabine. The three entered the complex, and was shocked by the sight of a massive fight inside the ring complex and dozens of AA batteries firing at the drop pods above. "Don't get carried away. The archive is under this building. Let's move."

The team headed towards a stairwell that led to the basement after having a skirmish with another squad of KVA soldiers. They reached the bottom, dropped a dozen of guards, and headed for the archives. "Okay. Plug in and download everything you can find related to Tailhead. Names, files, experiments, everything. See what you can find." The three pulled out their USBs and went through the KVA archive.

After searching the floor for a few minutes, Gideon headed back to the archive with a few photographs in his hand. "Did you find anything?" He asked. "Negative." Replied Ezra. "You, sir?" He continued. "Nothing, except these." Gideon showed one of the photos to Ezra and Sabine, leaving them staring at each other in confusion. "Is...is that a mutant?" Ezra stammered when he saw a blurry figure with two tentacles behind it. "No idea. But this has to go back to HQ. Let's go."

Ezra grabbed his IMR and headed back outside with the team. His radio rang up as they progressed up the stairwell. "Spectre 2-2! Advise you to get the hell out of the building. The KVA are swarming our position! We're being over..." The last thing Ezra heard before the radio went static was an explosion. Gideon hailed commander Sato for an extraction upon hearing the message. "This is Atlas 1, package secure! Requesting extraction at exfil point Charlie!" Shouted Gideon.

"Copy that. Warbird is on deck, get there ASAP, the KVA just breached our perimeter." Replied Sato. The team picked up the pace and soon got back to the ground floor. But just as they were about to sprint to their ride, it was hit by a volley of Stinger missiles and blew up in their faces, sending them flying backwards. "Commander! Our helo's smoked. Heading to secondary LZ!" Said Gideon. Sato's voice grew hazy as the three held their position in an office on the ground floor. "Negative, area's too hot. Sending you coordinates for extraction. It's three mikes away from your position."

"Then we'll have to start moving. Ezra! Get topside and provide sniper support!" Ordered Gideon. Ezra quickly sprinted up the stairs and got to a balcony on the first floor. He drew his rifle and started picking off unlucky KVA soldiers while Sabine and Gideon pushed to the other side of the building. "Dammit! Another turret ahead. Ezra, take it down!" Yelled Gideon. Ezra turned the barrel of his MK14 to the gunner and placed a round in his head, allowing the rest of his team to move to the other side.

Sabine glanced around briefly and noticed a KVA holding a Stinger in his hands. But before she could do anything about it, he fired the rockets onto Ezra's position. She frantically pressed down her radio and yelled out. "Incoming RPG!" Ezra looked out and saw a trail of smoke and four projectiles homing towards him. He quickly ditched his rifle and jumped out just in time. He landed right next to Gideon and pulled out his assault drone once again. Gideon got on his radio and called in air support.

"We're getting pounded at the center of the building! Marking targets with laser!" Soon, several armor-piercing rounds plummeted onto the KVA ahead of them. The three moved on and reached the entrance, taking down another squad of KVAs. "There's a jeep over there! See if you can put it together!" Sabine hopped on the driver seat and quickly got to work. And within moments, the engines were up and running.

Ezra jumped onto the turret while Gideon took the side seat. Sabine stepped on the acceleration hard, hard enough to shake Ezra off balance. "Commander Sato, we're inside an enemy transport, heading for extraction point. Requesting ETA." Said the captain. "Copy that Atlas 1, ETA four mikes."

"Gas it Sabine! Here they come!" Ezra shouted as four mounted jeeps and trucks closed in on them, followed by a fully armed chopper. Sabine has had enough, she asked Gideon to pull out her assault drone and clear her a path. The drone managed to take down a couple of technicals, but was damaged by the chopper's cannons. Ezra noticed the drone in peril, and turned his machine gun on the chopper, sending half of its crew falling to their death.

"Don't let up people! One mike left!" Gideon yelled through the radio. "Ezra! What happened to the cover? That chopper is gonna tear us apart!" He continued. Sabine heard his complaining and swerved the drone into the chopper, wreaking havoc inside and killing the pilot. "Happy now captain? Now where..." Sabine said as the chopper spat out a trail of black smoke and crashed behind them, but was interrupted when a rocket hit their ride, flipping the car.

Sabine was nearly knocked out when the blast hit. She was forced to crawl ahead, but was lifted up when Ezra noticed the wounded and sprinted towards her. He slipped his arms under her armpits and dragged her backwards while gunning down nearby KVAs with his pistol. Finally, after a grueling four minutes in the wild with the terrorists, a comforting voice crackled through the team's radio. "This is commander Sato, we're coming in for a gun run."

Moments later, the ground in front if Ezra was ignited into a ball of flames. The warbirds landed just behind him, and the crew inside helped Ezra and lifted Sabine inside. "Heard you needed a ride." Said the pilot. "Works with me. Anywhere but here." Replied Ezra as he plopped down the seats of the warbird and panted deeply.

"Once we get back, we'll start working on the photos." Said Gideon.


	4. Chapter 4: Predator

**AN: Please leave me a review so I can improve my story. Thank You.**

It was nightfall in Coruscant, a city located just ten miles away from New York and Kanan's old home. He sat on the chair near his working table, looking after the green alien he rescued from the hands of Atlas. He has heard of enough stories of alien invasions in his childhood, and he is not about to witness one first hand.

The alien suddenly gasped and coughed loudly. Kanan quickly helped her up and she held her head with her hand. "You're safe now. My name is Kanan Jarrus. What's yours?" She stared at him with a confused face, not understanding a single word from Kanan's mouth. "Ah, right. You don't speak English." He muttered. He grabbed a device off the table and placed it on the alien's head. "Hopefully this will work."

"Hera. My name is Hera." Replied the alien.

A week later...

"So how long have you two been a...thing?" Asked Gideon. "Long enough to bore you out." Said Sabine. "That doesn't mean..." Gideon was interrupted when Ezra piped up from the other side of the room. "Gideon, sir! You need to see this!" Gideon turned his attention to the young Atlas operative. "Talk to me." He ordered. "We got an update on the weapon. It's in fucking New York."

"The hell is it doing in New York?" Asked Sabine. "No idea. But from what I see, it's nothing good. We need to get our asses there, like, now." Replied Ezra. "Alright. Let's get going." Said Gideon. Ezra waited until the two were far away before he activated hidden radio in his watch. "This is Sentinel 1-3. The alien is in New York. I repeat New York."

'Predator'

New York, United States

June 13, 2042-2130hrs

"They're onto us! Leg it!" Kanan and Hera jumped off the roof of a skyscraper and onto another, with an armed police chopper Hot on their tails. "Don't let that gunner dial is in!" He pulled out his twin pistols and returned fire on the police gunship now just a few meters beside him. A crew fell out, and the gunship sped away. "We have to get off the roof!" Hera kicked open a door and sprinted down the stairwell inside. Several security guards attempted to stop them, but stood no chance against the well-trained Kanan Jarrus.

The two soon reached the ground floor. Kanan and Hera stacked up at the door and planted a charge on the reinforced door. "Use your built-in shield. The square symbol at the lower corner. Ready?" Hera nodded and Kanan hit the switch in his hands. The door was blown open, exposing the two to the heavy gunfire ahead of them. Hera activated her shield and drew her pistol while Kanan made a dash at the entrance of the building beside him. "Get over here! I'll cover you!"

Kanan took cover behind a counter and drew the police's attention, allowing Hera to make a run to his position. "You got any plans?" Asked Hera. Kanan checked his datapad on his Exo suit and scanned the map. "Yeah, but the cops are blocking our only way there. And I don't have a smoke." Replied Kanan. "We'll have to do this the hard way. Kill'em all."

Hera peeked out and started unloading bursts onto the advancing cops. The first few collapsed, forcing the rest to retreat behind their trucks. "Switch to auto! Fire as many rounds on them as you like on my mark!" Ordered Kanan. The two gunned down another dozen of cops before Kanan leaped from the counter. "Fire!" Hera stood up and unleashed a cluster of bullets onto the cops, taking down several unlucky officers. Kanan got to the centre of the road and planted a foldable assault shield on the ground.

He tossed a threat grenade towards the cops, giving away their position and allowing Hera to pick them off one by one. Soon, the area was clear, but the two were growing low on ammo. "Through the convention centre ahead. Let's go before more get here." They sprinted towards the building ahead of them, tuning into almost no resistance along the way. The two arrived at the ground floor of the centre minutes later, but it was horribly crowded, and it was almost impossible for them to get through before reinforcement arrives.

"Great. Just what we needed." Hera grunted. She turned around, and noticed Kanan pulling out his pistol. "What are you doing?" She asked. "We can't let anyone see you. Not now." The next thing she knew, Kanan was firing shots into the ceiling, scaring off the crowd and paving a way through. "Parking lot is downstairs. Let's go." The two made it to an elevator and got inside.

A few seconds later, the door slid open, and the two sprinted towards a jeep parked at the corner of the floor. Kanan hopped in the jeep ad started its engines. "I drive, you shoot. There's a MOL at the back of the truck. Might be useful." He yelled as he stepped on the acceleration. The jeep ran past the gate and was soon followed by a convoy of angry cops. Hera managed to flip one with the grenade launcher, but when she did, she spotted another chopper coming in, fast. "Damn! Chopper's back! Hera, aim for the pilot!"

Hera turned her attention to the chopper's cockpit. She was almost shot when she tried to aim for the pilot. "What happened about taking down the pilot?" Asked Kanan. "Your..." Hera was flung to the edge of the jeep when Kanan made a sharp turn onto a highway. "...fancy driving is not helping Kanan!" The chopper closed in, allowing Hera to finally take the pilot down. "About time...oh shit! Brace yourself!" The unmanned chopper crashed in front of them, blocking the highway. Hera seized this golden oppertunity and blew up the rest of the cops.

"Well, unless we can get this piece of shit out of our way, we're sitting ducks." Said Hera. "I know...wait, wait! Give me a hand. I think we can get this off the road together. Ready?" Hera ran up beside him. "Okay. One two three push!" The two lifted up the tail of the downed chopper, sending it tumbling to the ground almost three stories below and igniting a fiery explosion. "Problem solved. Let's go. We need to find a gas station and get to my old man's home." Said Kanan. "I've been stocking up on delusions from Atlas since he was gone. Now, it's our only hideout."


	5. Chapter 5: Seeker

**AN: What do you think Zeb would look like if he was a human? Please leave me a review. By the way I read the call of duty wiki and found out Gideon was supposed to be a kid in 2042, so, sorry about that mistake(but whatever).**

Gideon sat on a bench outside Central Park. He was reading a newspaper, trying to dig out some news of alien sightings, but to no avail. But then, out of the blue, a figure in a dark hoodie slapped his newspaper. "Gideon. We have an update." The captain looked up lazily and responded. "What?" He stood up and dumped the newspaper on the bench.

"Massive shootout in southern Manhattan last night. Says it's some kind of extraterrestrial involvement, plus, a terrorist attack in the stock exchange AND Times Square." Gideon's head bolted upright as soon as Ezra finished his sentence. "One crisis at a time. We take care of this, first. Let's get going."

'Seekers'

Stock Exchange, New York, United States

June 14, 2042-0540hrs

A single Sentinel Razorback VTOL hovered over the skies of New York. Inside was a team of three soldiers and a Goliath Mech. Another team of Sentinel operatives have already been deployed in the Stock Exchange to feign a terrorist attack in order to locate Ezra and Sabine, and now the team's about to give them a little extra help.

"All right fellas. Here's our objective." Yelled an African operative. "Extract Sentinel 1-2 and 1-3. To make its possible, you'll have to cripple them to create a smokescreen. We can't let the people down there know we're US, so whatever you do, do not blow your cover. In the cops' view, you're just another fuckin' KVA. So make sure you put on a good show. Stun rounds only."

"Just one question sergeant Cormack. Why the hell do these two matter so much?" Asked Orrelios. "Because they know where the alien is. Now get ready." The Razorback landed on the roof of the stock exchange. A team of four hopped out of the aircraft. Three of them were dressed as KVA soldiers while one was in an Goliath suit. Orrelios busted the door and the rest of the team poured inside.

"I'll cover your six." The team headed down the stairs, stunning security guards along the way. But when they were halfway there, the wall beside them exploded, and one soldier nearly fell to his death. The others desperately tried to pull him up, but all they could do was keep him from slipping away from their grips. "Orrelios! Bring that chopper down!" The sergeant deployed his Gatling gun and unloaded clusters of armor-piercing rounds into the tail of the chopper, sending it spinning out of control and crashing into the streets below.

Eventually, the Sentinels were able to pull up the soldier and recover themselves. "Watch yourself Knox, we can't save your ass every time." Said Cormack. "Yes sir." Knox replied sarcastically. "Cut the chatter. We need to move." Orrelios chimed in. The team ran into heavy fire as soon as they reached the lobby floor. Several other Sentinel operatives were spread out around the lobby, firing at the endless waves of police officers. "Where's Atlas?" Demanded Cormack.

"No sign of them...wait! Technical incoming!" He pointed at a truck screeching outside the entrance. Two of the Sentinels turned their weapons on the truck, but was stopped by Cormack and Orrelios. "Watch your fire! The two amateurs are with us!" Shouted Cormack. "Which two?" Knox exclaimed. "The girl! And the one without a beanie!" Replied Cormack. "Throwing smoke!"

A could instantly formed between the two sides, blinding both the Sentinels and the Atlas soldiers. "Knox, you're with me! Orrelios! Draw their fire!" Ordered Cormack. The two leaped out and made a run at the Atlas team while Orrelios continued wreaking havoc at the back. Soon, the two were just beside Ezra and Sabine, close enough to knock them out without being noticed too soon.

The duo landed their fists into their foreheads, rendering them unconscious. The two lifted them up and carried them back to their position. "Pick up the pace! Smoke won't last forever!" Within moments, the Sentinels successfully retreated through the back door and onto the Razorback, leaving the lone Gideon completely confused.

The following day...

Ezra slowly got back to his senses and found himself lying on a bed opposite to Sabine. He was surprisingly calm, for he knew the whole ordeal was just a plan to get him and Sabine back to Sentinel HQ. He hopped off his bunk and headed for the hangar a floor above him. There, he saw Cormack and Orrelios sitting on crates, still in their exo suits.

"Ah, good to see you in one piece Loth-rat." Orrelios greeted with a light punch on Ezra's shoulder. "You too sarge. Any word on the alien?" Cormack signaled the two to follow him. The three gathered around an empty spot with several other soldiers beside them. "We're receiving numerous reports of shootouts in Coruscant over the last 24 hours. But the one that happened an hour ago was the worst."

"How so?" Asked Ezra. "Half of Atlas was at the scene son. They're after a so-called experimental weapon called 'Tailhead', which we know it's not true. This," Cormack explained as he pulled out a photograph of, unknown to them, Hera. "is what it really is. Whatever this thing is, it's sentient, and it has its own race, capable of mounting a full invasion on our soil. To keep that from happening, we have to extract the man who is protecting it. Thanks to our two friend's Intel, we know this person is named Kanan Jarrus. We get them both out, then we can figure out a way to send it back to its home."

The soldiers nodded, and Cormack led them into their designated Razorbacks. "All right. Let's roll."


	6. Chapter 6: Contact

Sometime earlier...

"What's that you put on my head?" Hera asked curiously. "It's a translator. Works with pretty much all known language. In some cases, ancient language." Replied Kanan. "How exactly did an alien like you get on Earth anyway?" He continued. "The last thing I remember was being in my ship bound for an unknown planet..."

Flashback

'Contact'

Orbital platform O.D.I.N, Low Earth orbit

17 October, 2039-2300hrs

The orbital platform drifted past a satellite and towards an Atlas space station. Surrounding it was three astronauts with an Atlas logo on their shoulder plate. "Loki command, the orbital platform's weapons test is successful." Said an astronaut. "We're heading back for debriefing." He continued. A hazy but stable voice crackled through his radio. "Copy that, Kallus. Proceed to hatch 2 for debriefing."

Inside the orbital platform was a crew of two pilots and a squad of Atlas astronauts. The pilot glanced down on the radar and noticed a red spot on it. "Uh...Loki command. We're picking up an unknown signal on our scope. Are we scheduled for any satellite launches today?" Asked the pilot. "Negative Rudor. The only satellite today is already up here. Advise you to keep an eye on the bogey. Not sure if it's just a big chunk of debri or something else."

* * *

The Ghost jumped out of hyperspace and reduced its speed upon the arrival. It steered towards a set of satellite installations and continued to move forward. "Yes Chopper, we _are_ in wild space. Why did you ask?" Said Hera. Chopper beeped anxiously as he was trying to express a warning. "What do you mean there's something else out there?" Hera turned her attention to the space outside and noticed a blurry white dot in the distance. It grew bigger as the Ghost closed in on it. "That's...definitely not an asteroid. It looks like...a spaceship."

The Ghost's afterburner lit up, and it accelerated towards the 'spaceship', completely oblivious that it was, in fact, the Atlas space station. "Loki command? Do you copy?" Asked the co-pilot, who was staring at the Ghost with a pair of binos. "Loud and clear." Replied the command. "This is definitely NOT debri. It's more like...a UFO. Command, you need to contact ground control." Said the co-pilot as he shook his head. "This is eerie." Minutes later, Rudor and Kallus' radio crackled to life. "This is Loki command, the UFO we're seeing is NOT a satellite, I repeat, it's not a satellite. Possible hostile. All hands, battle stations. ODIN, proceed to intercept."

"This is lieutenant Valen Rudor, identify yourself." The radio remained static, since the two ship's communication systems are completely different design and there's no way they could talk with each other. Rudor repeated his last sentence, but there was still no respond. "Prepare to be boarded." Soon, the hatch of ODIN flung open, and a team of armed Atlas astronauts drifted towards the Ghost.

Hera peeked outside and saw a litter of white dots heading for her ship. She quickly ordered Chopper to activate the automated turret. "This can't be good." She muttered under her breath. The crew zeroed in on the vessel and Kallus scanned around for an entrance. "Look for a hatch." Ordered Kallus. Soon, one of the crew responded. "Hey Kallus, I found something." Kallus looked down, and saw the astronaut staring at what appears to be a turret. "Check it out Colin. Wait, something's not right..." Kallus whispered when he noticed the two barrels rotating and pointing at the astronaut.

The ISS is on high alert. A UFO was sighted from the space station and it is just miles away from ODIN. An investigation team was dispatched from the orbital platform to approach the bogey. All of a sudden, the radio of ISS was filled with chatter of horrified Atlas commanders. "This is ground control, get the crew back! Confirmed UFO as hostile! Pull them back now! ODIN, fire at the UFO!" Rudor was reluctant to fire at first, but after repeated demands from the ground control, he rotated the .105 turret and lined up for a clean shot.

The armour piercing round streaked through the vacuum space and landed below the Ghost's cockpit. The ship's shield managed to block the incoming projectile, but was severely depleted. "You leave me no choice, you bugs." Kallus, who was outside the ship, stared at the round as it exploded just inched away from the Ghost. "What the fuck was that?" He paused before he turned his attention to Colin. "Shit! Colin, get back!" It was too late. Colin was shot dead along with two other astronauts. Kallus managed to avoid the deadly blasts and ducked into a blind spot. "ODIN! We need immediate support! We got multiple KIAs, put another .105 on that ship!"

Kallus peeked out and pulled out his SN6 from his hip. He managed to draw Hera's attention, but he knew they wouldn't last long, not without some help from ODIN. A volley of .105 rounds hurtled towards the Ghost. Hera maneuvered to dodge the enemy fire, making Kallus' job to hang on even harder. Soon, the Ghost was only a few hundred yards away from ODIN, making it an easy target. Rudor switched to an EMP round and managed to knock out the Ghost's systems, sending it into a blackout. "Chopper! They're boarding the ship! Hold them off!...Chopper, do you copy?"

Kallus turned to ISS and saw another team of Atlas operatives drifting towards him. He signalled them to place charges around the turret. "Hope these things work up here." The turret blew up in a ball of white smoke, allowing the Atlas team to enter the Ghost. "Clear! Wait...what...not clear! That's ali... *screams*..." Kallus nearly shrieked. There was more than just a high-tech terrorist in that ship. "Watch your corners!" Hera managed to gun down one Atlas soldier, but was stunned when Kallus and the rest of the Atlas team started pouring into the ship. "Captain Kallus, sitrep."

"Ship's clear. And um...we have a passenger." Reported Kallus. "What is it?" Asked Rudor. "It's...alien. We need to take it back to 51."

Reality

"And the next thing I know, I was on your bed, afraid." Said Hera. "So you're saying there's a lot more of you out there?" Asked Kanan. "Yes. They're just like you humans. We even have a fleet. I was one of them." Kanan felt a chill down his spine. His fear was right, Hera's species do have a fleet. And if they have a fleet, they're most likely capable o using Hera as an excuse to mount a full invasion.

"Do you know if anyone else that got captured by Atlas?" Kanan questioned anxiously. "Only from the myths. Here goes..."

23 July, 2045

Kanan sat on the summit with Hera beside him and their truck parked behind them. The two stared up into the sky as the glaring sun slowly descended into the horizon. It was Hera who finally broke the silence. "Kanan...you could've chose to walk away. You could've spared yourself from all this. But...you didn't."

Kanan turned his head and noticed Hera's hand on his. He breathed deeply and flipped his palm. "I remember I used to hold back my...emotions back at Atlas, thinking it would set me back in a fight. I was wrong." He gently pulled Hera closer to him while she rested her head on Kanan's shoulder plate. "You proved me wrong."

"I never thought I would do this to a human." She stammered. Kanan was caught off guard when he felt Hera's lips on his cheek. "Thank you, Kanan."


End file.
